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10 Best Sports Cars for Everyday Use

With today’s modern vehicles featuring fuel injection and traction control, there’s little reason to limit your sports car to weekend use. To demonstrate this, the editors at Autobytel have come up with the 10 best sports cars for everyday use.

While few of the cars on our list would be practical for families, there are plenty of options. We've included two-door coupes, convertibles, and even a four-door hatchback. Read on to see if one of our selections could tickle your fancy every day — whether it’s on the way home from work, or to your next vacation destination.

10) 2019 Chevrolet Camaro

Starting at $25,995, the two-door Chevrolet Camaro is an affordable way to get into a sports car that you can use every day. The standard powertrain for base versions is a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that sends 275 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque to the rear wheels while returning 25 miles per gallon combined with the eight-speed automatic or 23 mpg with the six-speed manual.

The sprint to 60 miles per hour takes around 5.5 seconds, but the turbocharged four is by far the lightest version of the Camaro, which helps make it fun to drive, especially when equipped with the 1LE Track Performance Package. And unlike the most powerful versions of the Camaro, you can make use of all of the turbo four’s horses on the street.

9) 2019 Ford Mustang

Base versions of the two-door Ford Mustang start at $26,395, which gets you a 2.3-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine that makes 310 horsepower and 350 lb-ft of torque, which is sent to the rear wheels through either a 10-speed automatic or six-speed manual. No matter which transmission you choose, the Ecoboost Mustang will hit 60 miles per hour in under 5.5 seconds with a combined fuel economy rating of 25 miles per gallon.

The driving experience is good and the handling lets you use most of the power much of the time, especially with the available EcoBoost Performance Package with its Torsen limited-slip rear axle, summer tires, and strut-tower brace, and the optional MagneRide damping system.

8) 2019 Nissan GT-R

A starting price of $99,900 for the Pure version makes the two-door Nissan GT-R one of the more expensive cars on our list. But for the money, you get a turbocharged 3.8-liter V6 that produces 565 horsepower and 467 lb-ft of torque which is sent through a six-speed dual-clutch transmission and then to all four wheels through Nissan’s Attesa E-TS all-wheel drive system.

This arrangement gives the GT-R tremendous amounts of grip, even in poor conditions, and helps it get up to 60 miles per hour in less than three seconds. Downsides to using the GT-R as an everyday sports car are a combined fuel economy rating of 18 miles per gallon and an aging interior, though the ride quality is surprisingly decent.

7) 2019 Subaru BRZ

The two-door Subaru BRZ is powered by a naturally aspirated 2.0-liter horizontally opposed boxer engine generates 205 horsepower and 156 lb-ft of torque with the manual transmission (automatic models have slightly lower numbers), which is sent to the rear wheels in true sports car tradition.

The BRZ has a starting price of $25,795 (while the nearly identical Toyota 86 starts at $26,455), and combined fuel economy is rated at 27 miles per gallon with the six-speed automatic and 24 miles per gallon with the six-speed manual. The run to 60 miles per hour takes just over six seconds, making the BRZ the slowest car on our list — but the BRZ isn’t about acceleration but about making the most with the limited amount of power on tap.

6) 2019 Volkswagen Golf R

The Volkswagen Golf R is the only four-door car on our list of the 10 best sports cars for everyday use. For a starting price of $40,395, you get a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that provides 288 horsepower and 280 lb-ft of torque that’s sent to all four wheels through either a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission or a six-speed manual.

Fuel economy is 26 miles per gallon combined with the dual-clutch and 24 mpg with the manual, and either transmission should be able to get the Golf R up to 60 miles per hour in five seconds or less. While that might not make it the fastest hot hatch, it is one of the nicest to drive, with a great interior, fun handling, and a comfortable ride.

5) 2019 BMW i8

Starting at $147,500, the two-door BMW i8 has both the highest starting price and the smallest engine on our list of the 10 best sports cars for everyday use. The 1.5-liter turbocharged three-cylinder engine works alongside an AC synchronous electric motor to generate a healthy total of 369 horsepower that are sent to all four wheels and can get the i8 up to 60 miles per hour in a respectable 4.2 seconds.

While the i8 isn’t all that roomy and ingress and egress can be a bit difficult, it does have an all-electric range of 17 miles and then has a combined fuel economy rating of 27 miles per gallon when running on gasoline, making it especially practical for those with short commutes who have a charging station near work.

4) 2019 Mazda MX-5 Miata

Ever since the first version of the Mazda MX-5 Miata was released in 1989, it has proven that a convertible sports car can be reliable and practical enough to drive every day. The current versions get 181 horsepower and 151 lb-ft of torque from the 2.0-liter naturally aspirated four-cylinder, which is backed by either a six-speed manual or a six-speed automatic that sends power to the rear wheels.

That’s enough to get the lightweight drop-top up to 60 miles per hour in under six seconds while returning great fuel economy of 29 miles per gallon with the manual and 30 mpg with the automatic. The interior is simple but nicely laid out, and dropping or raising the top can be done in seconds.

3) 2019 Lexus LC

Starting at $92,300, the two-door rear-wheel drive Lexus LC gets its power from either a 471-horsepower 5.0-liter V8 that can get the LC up to 60 miles per hour in 4.4 seconds or from hybrid system made up of a 3.5-liter V6 and a pair of electric motors that generate a combined 354 total system horsepower and can get it up to 60 mph in 4.7 seconds.

The V8 uses a 10-speed automatic that returns a combined 19 miles per gallon, while the hybrid uses a continuously variable transmission that’s rated at an impressive 30 mpg combined. The LC is on the heavy side and isn't the nimblest of cars, but it does offer decent handling a very luxurious and beautiful interior that you'd love to use every day.

2) 2019 Porsche 718 Cayman

The Porsche 718 Cayman starts at $56,900 with a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine that produces 300 horsepower and 280 lb-ft of torque and returns 25 miles per gallon combined with the seven-speed dual clutch transmission and 24 mpg with the six-speed manual.

The run from 0 to 60 mph takes less than five seconds with either transmission (or 4.5 seconds with the Sport Chrono package and dual-clutch transmission), and thanks to its mid-engine rear-wheel drive layout, the Cayman is one of the most fun-to-drive Porsche models available. The interior isn’t quite as nice as you’d expect for the money and the engine sound isn’t as nice as the car's former boxer six-cylinder, but everything else just feels right.

1) 2019 Chevrolet Corvette

Starting at just $56,995, you can get a Chevrolet Corvette with a naturally aspirated 6.2-liter V8 that produces 455 horsepower and 460 lb-ft of torque, backed by either a seven-speed manual transmission or an eight-speed automatic.

Fuel economy for the manual version is 19 miles per gallon combined, while the automatic gets an 18 mpg rating. The sprint to 60 miles per hour takes less than four seconds, making it one of the fastest vehicles on our list. The interior isn't up to the standard set by some of our other selections, but it is comfortable and offers tons of grip, a decent ride, and a surprisingly large trunk that makes it practical enough for everyday use.